Plot

After extensive research, a coalition of super-scientist Dominators and their warlike allies the Khunds determine that humanity poses a threat to the rest of the universe. Although most other alien species are rather consistent and predictable, the amount of genetic diversity present in the human race has made them too powerful to allow continued existence. There is a strand in human DNA called the "meta-gene" that allows them to develop extraordinary powers under duress, and become superheroes, whose presence must be eradicated before it becomes unstoppable. An Alien Alliance is formed from many prominent civilizations on a number of worlds, all of whom agree that the metahuman threat must be wiped out. Dissenters are imprisoned in a great Starlag. Assembling a fleet of hundreds of warships, the Alliance travels to Earth and makes their message clear in a great invasion. All superheroes must be surrendered to them peacefully, or the nations of the world will be completely obliterated in the struggle to take them forcefully. United Nations representatives from across the world meet to deliberate on the Crisis, and never have they all agreed so forcefully or spoken with such a singular voice. They tell the aliens to drop dead.[1]

In the First Strike, war rages across the world as heroes and villains alike fight to protect their homeland. Facing global genocide, many of the warriors are forced into a more serious and deadly arena of combat than ever before. Finally, a summit is held coordinating Earth's superhuman forces. Captain Atom is the commander of all metahuman forces, Amanda Waller is in charge of intelligence and coordinating supervillains, Wade Eiling is placed in charge of the military and Maxwell Lord acts as official liaison to Justice League International. The tides turn in favor of the heroes, as this rallying point gets them organized enough to start kicking ass and hitting where it hurts. Rioting at Starlag led by Vril Dox and the Omega Men overthrows the guards at the cost of many casualties. Realizing that they are on the wrong side of the war, the Daxamites ally with earth command and turn on their collaborators, leading to a complete victory. It is a day of great triumph for our planet, as for once the many nations of the world were able to put aside their differences and unite against an external threat.[2]

Impact

The largest effect that Invasion! had on the DC Universe was the introduction of the concept of metahumans. There is a genetic trait that allows for the development of superpowers should something activate it. This explanation for why so many people are imbued with superpowers is now commonplace, used for many characters both good and evil. It has become the standard explanation. This has also led to a good deal of retconning origin stories. Many characters have been found to possess the meta-gene since then, which often adds a layer of credibility to otherwise dubious origin stories, even for comic books. For example, the Flash supposedly gained powers when he was hit by chemicals and a bolt of lightning. Revised origins would indicate that these chemicals did not give him his abilities, but rather helped him unlock recessive powers that were already there.

Another massive retcon is established for the Legion of Super-Heroes mythos. The many races that make up the United Planets are often criticized as being too human-like to prevent a realistic view of alien diversity. Despite the fact that they are supposed to be different species, almost all of them look and act exactly like humans but with the addition of a single superpower. It is revealed that this is because they are all descended from humans. Some months after the Crisis, Valor discovers that Dominators are still abducting humans and conducting experiments. After rescuing a large population of metahumans, they decide that the best path would be to go out and colonize Buffer Planets between Earth and Dominator Space. As such, a large number of people with ice powers build new homes on Tharr, future home of Polar Boy, and so on. Many aliens in the time of the Legion are really metahumans after a millennium of breeding, which explains a lot.[3]

Deaths

Issues

The primary storyline was told throughout the eponymous miniseries Invasion! which consisted of three issues each of which were 80-Page Giants. This provides the backbone for the event with all of the important plot points, and can be read alone in its entirety to understand the story. The crossovers function as further insight into the story, providing a more detailed look at the actions of the individual characters and teams during the Crisis. Tie-in stories were divided into First Strike and Aftermath.

Core Issues

First Strike

Following the actual physical invasion that took place after the first issue, these stories strictly took place in between Invasion! #1 and Invasion! #2, providing a look at how heroes around the world were dealing with the Alien Alliance individually and in small groups before they actually got organized. These are the stories that the event is primarily known for, featuring the actual war themselves. Most of them end with the cease-fire, and the super-hero summit.

Aftermath

These issues take place between Invasion! #2 and Invasion! #3 dealing with fallout from the main battle against the aliens. Although the heroes had recently made their victory, which appeared final at the time... they would still face the last ditch efforts of the Gene Bomb meant to completely decimate them. Aftermath tie-ins cleared up loose ends in the storyline before moving on to the conclusion of the event in the core issues. Interestingly, they still take place right after the technical middle of the story.

Links and References

Invasion! Crossover
The events from this issue or series are related to Invasion!, during which an Alien Alliance led by the hostile super-scientist Dominators invades the Earth in an attempt to exterminate humanity. They wish to eliminate the metagene, for fear that the unpredictable nature of earthlings could destroy them in the future.This template will categorize articles that include it into the Invasion! Crossovers category.